Any worthwhile journey will have ups and downs. This is absolutely inevitable. When we’re frustrated is when the real work begins and we can’t give up every time we feel frustrated. 

Think about a time in your life when you persevered. Think about a time when you wanted to give up but didn’t. Think about a time when you were resilient. Why do we persist with so many things in life, but when it comes to our health and fitness the second (the moment!) – we’re not into it, we want to give up?

Why do we have so much patience when it comes to everything else but when it comes to our health we have none? There is nothing more important than our health. We all “know” this. Ask anyone who loses their health. It becomes ALL they think about.

So here's the thing...When you truly feel what it feels like to be strong, empowered, and in control. There’s nothing like it. The best part? That feeling and attitude spills over into every other area of your life. Everything else is a wonderful side effect. The sad part? Many people quit before they ever feel that. Not you though. You’re going to be so happy you stuck with it. It’s easy when it’s easy. The real work happens when it doesn’t feel easy.

Quick question — when should we create our goals? When motivation is high??? Or when motivation is at its lowest…As odd as this may sound you should be setting your goals when motivation and ability is at its lowest! If the things we set out to do are still doable when motivation is low, chaos is high, and life is crazy...then we have arrived at a place where our lifestyle is doable no matter what!

With that being said, there will inevitably be things in your real life that will throw you for a loop and make even the simplest of the simple seem impossible. So, when this happens, don’t freak out and think that everything that you have been working towards has blown up in your face.

Instead, assess the situation and take a look at the “season” that you are in using these three categories: 

The Green Light Season

In a green light season all systems are feeling ready to go! Everything is feeling easy and you feel in control of how you are showing up every day. You recognize that perfection isn't necessary but things are going smoothly in your life overall. You are in a good routine with home, work and your real strong lifestyle. When things pop up you feel capable of handling them and your confidence is high. In a green light season you may even feel ready to take on a new challenge, try something that is a little scary, or make a change that you feel ready for but have been hesitant to jump into. 

The Yellow Light Season:

In a yellow light season some of your systems are feeling off.  Things are feeling a little challenging and you feel in control of some things and out of control with others. Your day to day feels a little chaotic and you feel like you are pivoting a lot right now. You wake up ready to take on each day but the days just don't seem to go as planned. Your routine seems a little off yet, tolerable. Some days it's at home, other days it's work but, no matter where the chaos shows up it unfortunately impacts you. Things keep popping up and it's wearing on you but you make an effort where you can. In a yellow light season you have to be careful to take on any more than you already are. Reminding yourself to slow down is necessary. 

The Red Light Season:

In a red light season all systems feel like they are failing. Things are feeling hard and you feel like how you show up each day is out of your control. You recognize that life has thrown you a curveball and that prioritizing some very simple things each day is the only way you are going to get through this. Your routine with home, work and your real strong lifestyle doesn’t seem to exist but you know that showing up for the bare minimum will keep you afloat. When things pop up you feel stressed and overwhelmed so you let go of the things that aren’t a high priority. In a red light season you take a deep breath and tell yourself -- that grace is good and this too shall pass. 

The purpose of the addressing and labeling seasons is to allow yourself the freedom to feel ok with the changes in your level of commitment, motivation, drive, giving a damn, and ability.

You might feel different seasons day to day or week to week or month to month. You may notice patterns too. Maybe transition seasons like the kids going back to school or the kids being home for the summer are always yellow for you. Maybe shark week is yellow. Maybe you can remember feeling red when your kids all got sick. Either way, recognizing that these patterns pop up for you and doing a little bit of work ahead of time to prepare for them could be helpful.

You won’t always know how to handle the season because real life ups and downs don’t always present themselves the same way but just being aware is helpful.

Learn BASIC strategies on how to navigate a real strong lifestyle through these seasons with my FREE course. Grab it HERE: https://melanielund.com/course/